"It’s really a tough call but we put ourselves in position where I feel like in my mind, with our ball club and everything, our goal should be to win the Eastern Conference," Leonard said.

While he allows that the Boston Celtics should enter the year as the favorite in the conference, the departure of LeBron James to the Los Angeles Lakers opens up the conference to numerous competitors. Leonard sees the Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors as two other talented teams.

But, even though those rosters boast their own complement of high profile players, there's one Indiana Pacers guard he'd put up against any of them.

“Victor (Oladipo), the way he played this past year, he could have played in any era I’ve seen in my time," Leonard said. "He could have played in the Michael Jordan era. He’s talented.”